Governor Signs Measure to Fund Caltrans District Office in Orange County

Gov. George Deukmejian on Sunday signed legislation providing $4.1 million for a recently created California Department of Transportation district office in Orange County.

As the state’s third most populous county, Orange County needs the new district office to “meet growing transportation demands,” the governor noted in signing the bill by Assemblyman Ross Johnson (R-La Habra).

“By shifting state transportation facilities and personnel where they are most needed, we are making the most efficient use of available resources,” Deukmejian said.

Passed as an emergency measure, Johnson’s bill will take effect immediately.

Separated From L.A. Office

Last April 23, the governor gave in to pressure from Orange County political and business leaders and announced the creation of Caltrans District 12, removing the county from under the jurisdiction of the District 7 office in Los Angeles.

County leaders, in pressuring the governor, claimed that a separate Caltrans staff was needed to ensure that the county got its fair share of Caltrans resources and keep proposed projects from falling further behind schedule.

At the time of Deukmejian’s announcement, Johnson had a bill pending before the Legislature that would have created the new Caltrans district office in Orange County.

Since the new district office was created, it has been slowly constructing itself. Robert H. Ramey, a veteran state highway official, held the interim district manager post until July, when Keith McKean, a 36-year Caltrans veteran, became the permanent director.

‘Flesh and Blood’

The office has been operating with a partial staff in Anaheim, all shifted from the Los Angeles office. With the approval of the $4.1 million budget, the new office gradually will rise to a strength of 600 employees.

Stanley Oftelie, executive director of the Orange County Transportation Commission, was jubilant at the news out of the state capital on Sunday.

“This puts flesh and blood to the structure already approved,” Oftelie said.

Caltrans currently has 92 projects in Orange County, including 20 major ones that Oftelie said made it crucial to have a Caltrans district office in the county.

“This is very important to us. We have been suffering too many delays on major projects,” he said. “This will give top priority to Orange County and keep delays from going on further. This is just a big help.”

A recent report prepared by the OCTC staff indicated that 13 of the 20 major highway projects in Orange County are currently behind schedule.

The major one, the widening of Interstate 5 between the Costa Mesa and Garden Grove freeways, has been delayed an additional 18 months.

The project was scheduled to begin in July, 1988, but now is not expected to commence until January, 1990.

According to the OCTC report, the other projects are behind schedule anywhere from two to 24 months.